Transaction cards, such as gift cards, credit cards, identification cards, driver's licenses, user passes, electronic cash cards, automatic teller machine (ATM) cards, customer loyalty cards, prepaid telephone cards, and so on, are commonly manufactured using encoding and printing apparatus. For example, many types of transaction cards must be personalized, i.e., encoded, printed, or otherwise processed so that each card in a given group of cards is uniquely identified from other cards in the group. For example, transaction cards in a loyalty card program may be encoded and/or printed to carry a unique identifier such as an alpha numeric string encoded in a magnetic stripe on the card and/or printed as a barcode on the card. This unique identifier allows each card in a group of cards to be uniquely identified with a particular issuee so that future transactions made with the card can later be associated with the issuee.
Card issuers, such as merchandise retailers, typically purchase transaction cards, such as gift cards, from a manufacturer in large batches of 10,000, 100,000 or more cards. Purchasing cards in large groups can reduce the per unit cost of the cards since the manufacturer can specially configure manufacturing equipment for an extended run (instead of having to reconfigure on a more frequent basis for different, smaller jobs) and purchase stock and other materials in relatively large quantities. As a result, card issuers typically receive the cards in large groups from the manufacturer. In the case of gift cards, before the cards are issued to customers, a database or other information store must be created for the card issuer to keep track of which cards have been issued and which are in inventory, how much each account associated with each issued gift card has been credited, the identity of each issuee, and other information. Without such a database, the gift card program would be difficult, if not impossible, to implement.